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Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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I'd like to sell my house and rent for a while just to take a break from all of the home maintenance, etc. I happened to look at house rentals in my area and noticed some ads that specifically said tenants are responsible for things like
Is this the new normal? When I've rented in the past, the only thing I've ever had to worry about were utilities, changing lightbulbs, and sometimes mowing and/or raking. That's why I like to rent. Anyway, can anyone offer advice/opinions?
I always thought pretty much everything was covered by the landlord besides utilities, lightbulbs, etc.
I wouldn't really trust tenants with that much responsibility. How is HVAC maintenance enforced? What's considered adequate maintenance, etc.
If I were renting, I'd skip any place that wants me to do all that. It sounds like the only thing you're saving money on (vs owning) is the property tax.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
4,640 posts, read 11,938,904 times
Reputation: 9886
Quote:
Originally Posted by raveabouttoast
I always thought pretty much everything was covered by the landlord besides utilities, lightbulbs, etc.
I wouldn't really trust tenants with that much responsibility. How is HVAC maintenance enforced? What's considered adequate maintenance, etc.
If I were renting, I'd skip any place that wants me to do all that. It sounds like the only thing you're saving money on (vs owning) is the property tax.
Thanks, that is what I was thinking. Also, we have had issues where power has been out for days. No way am I taking the blame when the pipes freeze. Why would a landlord want to risk having a tenant on a ladder cleaning gutters? I'm hoping that these properties were just anomalies.
I think it depends on the individual rental. Mine HAD a stand of bamboo in the neighbors yard next to it, that stuff shed crap into the gutter daily. They had to be cleaned a minimum of monthly. It was all of 30ft long and only 8ft high off the ground. I expected my 20 something tenant to use the step ladder and hose I left there for that purpose to clean the gutter monthly.
In general, with a house the tenant is responsible for more. I rented a house for 10 years. Only called the landlord for repairs twice. Once the bathroom sink drainpipe broke, just old metal and the well water corroded it. They sent a plumber who assured the landlord that I didn't break it, and replaced it with new PVC.
Another time, the house was on a corner and someone cut through the yard overnight and tore the well head right out of the ground with the undercarriage. Again I had to defend myself but the landlord got it fixed quickly.
Sucked that I had to defend myself with a such a lengthy period of otherwise being a non-trouble making tenant though.
Anyway, yes my tenants are responsible for maintaining the A/C. Yes they are responsible for yard work and keeping the exterior in good shape. For me that means don't ruin it.
No chimney. Frozen pipes are a no brainer too if you live in a cold environment you should know how to keep your pipes from freezing.
These things are more preventative then anything else. If you don't want any responsibility for a house you should not rent one.
I am in charge of renting my son's house right now, through a property management company, and I was very surprised at the lengthy list of items the tenant is responsible for, including insect control, all yard maintenance (up to HOA standards), cleaning the refrigerator coils monthly (lest they be responsible for refrigerator repairs), replacing the air filter monthly (lest they be responsible for HVAC repair), all utilities.
If anything major breaks, and it is not the direct result of tenant carelessness or neglect, then the PM company takes care of it and charges us.
Yes care of the exterior means perhaps removing well water stains regularly, or mildew, not running your lawn mower into it, etc. It doesn't mean you have to repaint, unless you ruined the paint. Its a you break it you buy it. Keep it nice and it won't break. Keep the AC filters changed and the AC most likely will work just fine. Don't use pine logs and then tell me you clogged the chimney or that its smoking too much.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
4,640 posts, read 11,938,904 times
Reputation: 9886
Wow. No way would I rent and be responsible for all of that. The property owner should definitely be responsible for cleaning the exterior and structural maintenance. After all, the property owner should have insurance and also has the benefit of writing things off on their taxes. The whole reason I'd rent is because I don't want to deal with maintenance and repairs. If this really is the way things are going, I'll pay my own mortgage, thank you very much. Jeez.
Anything that would require a ladder or power tools (even lawn mowing) should NEVER be left to tenants.
Funniest thung you've ever said.
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